Step 8: Flying and Recovery

Step 9: Part Sources, Pages and suggestions

The Capsule: Very often I get asked where can one buy a Hasbro GI Joe capsule, the answer is always the same eBay . In the 10 years since I started t...

This project was inspired 40 years ago when I got a GI Joe Mercury Capsule for my birthday. I always imagined it flying (even orbiting) and it kept me out of my parent's hair for days on end. Fast-forward to the mid 90s when the GI Joe Capsules are re-issued by Toys-R-Us -- naturally I picked up one (well 3). After the popularity and success of the Gumby flights I simply had to look to the shelf above my workstation to be inspired for my next big project. When I found a tube that was 9.25" (the exact diameter of the Capsule base), this project was set into motion.

A LOT of this project was engineered on the fly and by no means reflects the best way to approach the tasks described. It's just how I did it and you're welcome to make changes any way that suit your engineering skills.

I offer this in hope that this 'instructable' will inspire others to build and fly similar projects.

Step 1: Preamble

To send a full GI Joe capsule aloft (with Astronaut), have the capsule free-fall and deploy its recovery system safely. The entire flight will be recorded by three (to 5) different on-board video systems.

This ISN'T a scale project; the "Mercury Booster" is a little thicker than the real thing. The "Mercury" capsule is built from the GI Joe unit, is under scale as well.

The big challenge of this project is to perfect a system that allows the capsule to free-fall to a safe altitude before deploying its parachutes. Technically this is no more than a dual deployment flight, but the added complication of extracting the tower so the capsule can free-fall is anything but simple.

At apogee the capsule (with tower) will decouple from the booster.

The capsule has a deployment bag attached to the heat shield which will pull out the pilot chute for the booster.

The decoupling activates an ejection charge timer inside the tower, allowing for the capsule and tower to drift away from the booster which will be unfurling its main chute.

Once the tower charge has fired and its chute has inflated, the weight of the capsule causes it to fall free off the tower base.

The capsule free-falls to about 1500' before deploying a pilot and main chute combination.

With all going to plan, video of the flight is captured from the booster, looking up and down, the Tower, looking down and the capsule, both interior and an additional view down.

Taking Shobley's idea a bit further though...it would be fun to mix the personality core screeching 'SPAAAAAAACE' to go off at time of launch *grin*. I might have to look into doing something like this and adding it in.

The Age limit for high power is different depending on the club you choose to join and I'm not up to speed on those regulations but finding a local club and meeting the people there will give you a better idea as to what's available for you in your area.

Wow! This is an amazing build, I have been involed in model rocketry since I could pick up a bottle of glue and a xacto knife but i've stuck closely to scale model engeneering. I seem to have trouble when i build out of scale.

Man o man, does this bring back memories.I used to do model rockets as a kid - in Brooklyn,NY, and I scratch built a Little Joe II from cardboard boxes and a lotta glue. Biggest engine I had was an Estes C6-5. It was heavy and took off real slow with a nice slow spiral. Fins were bent on the landing and it never flew the same. That's what dreams are made of.

Video has come a long way from the instamatic snapshot cameras of old. Even the paper protractors we used to spot the altitude.You're lucky to have a place where you can even launch.

Anyway, very nice. I hope you put up other instructables on the other parts of the system. Kids nowadays should get away from video games and get a real hobby like this.